Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya met with the Secretary of State of Portugal, Bernardo Ivo Cruz. The event, which took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Portugal in Lisbon, also featured leaders of Belarusian startups working in Portugal and representative of the Imaguru Startup Hub, Anastasiya Khamiankova.
During the meeting, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya thanked Mr. Cruz for Portugal’s support for the exiled Belarusian businesses and called on the Portuguese government to simplify legal procedures for entrepreneurs from Belarus.
Representatives of Belarusian companies informed the Secretary about the problems they face when working in Portugal. They specifically mentioned the issues of opening bank accounts and tax burden for IT companies.
Legal issues were also discussed, including simplifying procedures for the legalization of stay, abolishing the requirement for apostille on documents, extending eligibility for foreigners passports, and issuing documents to Belarusian children born in Portugal.
Portugal’s Foreign Ministry will appoint a contact person to continue communication on resolving these issues.
The Belarusian leader emphasized that exiled Belarusian businesses work for the benefit of democratic changes in the country, help the repressed and political prisoners, support Belarusian initiatives, as well as Belarusian volunteer fighters in Ukraine.
